MJDNRP-6885
Member
4 Q's, 4 888's and a roto-ray!!!!
- Thread starter MJDNRP-6885
- Start date
Travelin Man
Member
The past chief of Mt Horeb, affectionately known as "Fire Truck Chuck," always decked out his rigs. His department and members were well trained, well equipped, and well respected. Chief Himsel passed away in 2010.
Check out this memorial to Chief Himsel, featuring one of our more famous board members:
Check out this memorial to Chief Himsel, featuring one of our more famous board members:
Phillyrube
Member
This outfit has a heavy squad with 2 rotorays, and a 5 trumpet train horn:
Walkersville Rescue Company, Inc. - Frederick County, Maryland
Walkersville Rescue Company, Inc. - Frederick County, Maryland
paff2
Member
Phillyrube said:
No thanks!!! I will take my practical use bumper with handlines etc! What a waste!
JohnMarcson
Administrator
Two of the "Qs" are covers over BP100s. The fact that two are still mechanical is astounding though.
Travelin Man
Member
They have train horns behind the lightbars on FDNY Rescue 2. The new rescue has them too. I can't find a video, but here is a photo I found online.
http://www.firecompanies.com/MFC/public/gallery_images/11276134145_orig.jpg
http://www.firecompanies.com/MFC/public/gallery_images/11276134145_orig.jpg
Last edited by a moderator:
Boss429
Member
Tritonhoward64
Member
MJDNRP-6885
Member
mfpd465
Member
MJDNRP-6885 said:
They tryin to burn the Q up? its ineffective if you leave it wound up the whole time, like burnin dollar bills. Jus my 2 cents
Travelin Man
Member
Travelin Man
Member
Solvarex said:
Did you bother to read the first post in the thread? 2 Q's (one for officer and one for driver) and 2 electronic. This is the way the FDMH has rolled for years. Take a look at the video that I posted as well.
Oh well that makes it much better then!Travelin Man said:
It's still ridiculous, unnecessary, wasteful, and probably horribly aggravating for residents to listen to constantly. It's not like Mount Horeb has NY-style gridlock to get through for Christ's sakes. I can only imagine what the poor residents that have to listen to that cacophony think.
I'm not questioning the dedication, professionalism, or capabilities of their members, in case you hadn't noticed.
Lightbarnut
New Member
Solvarex said:Oh well that makes it much better then!
It's still ridiculous, unnecessary, wasteful, and probably horribly aggravating for residents to listen to constantly. It's not like Mount Horeb has NY-style gridlock to get through for Christ's sakes. I can only imagine what the poor residents that have to listen to that cacophony think.
I'm not questioning the dedication, professionalism, or capabilities of their members, in case you hadn't noticed.
sorry but i agree with you on this one
i think the front is way to busy and not feeling the mix of lights just looks like a mess.....
no way you need that many sirens . all our riggs have air horn reg siren and fed q most of time just use the q a bit and a tap of air horns and we ripp through the whole neighborhood and sometimes next towns over with no problem
Not hatin', the poster was just intended to poke fun at what I feel is an obnoxious extreme. I know this is a board of light and siren fanatics but I think you'd be hard pressed to get the majority to agree this setup is either A) a sound expenditure based on necessity, or B) considerate and respectful to the townsfolk when in use.Lightbarnut said:
NFD-102
Member
Wailer said:
Wow...way to be a debbie downer about the Q. We will never get rid of the Q in my department. Our new truck didn't come with one and a bunch of us went out and bought one for it.
I will say this - I love the sound of the Q. Only one rig in my city has one so it's a treat to hear it spin up, never fails to bring a smile.
Solvarex said:
Your post edited so I can reply to relevant parts.
My neighbors hate when I get a call at night because my flashing lights shine through their windows and wake them up. I don't use the siren on my street at night unless there's a good reason for it.
Being considerate and respectful comes secondary to my safety as an emergency vehicle operator. If you don't like hearing my siren, or seeing my lights... put out your own fire! Or better yet, don't start a fire at all!
I agree to a point. There's adequate warning power, optimal warning power, and then there's excessive warning power. The FDMH rigs exceed this into ridiculousness. Even FDNY doesn't feel the need for four friggin sirens and they unquestionably have FAR more traffic to warn than a backwater vollie department.foxtrot5 said:
Well now that's a mature, rational, and adult response, isn't it. Glad I don't have you "protecting" me.
foxtrot5 said:
No reason to use L&S in a residential neighborhood after 11-12pm. Unless you have incredible gridlock traffic in the suburbs after midnight. I dont understand when our fire companies are hammering the Q going 70mph and they are the only vehicle on the road.
FDMH is a joke with those lights.
JohnMarcson said:
Still, 2 Q's? Isn't one good enough, mixed with a standard electronic siren? I like overdoing things as much as the next guy, but c'mon...
JohnMarcson
Administrator
Threads from http://elightbars.org/forums/f24/google-ad-sense-20469/ which just used a Mt Horeb video as an example, are now here. The ones about where these posts should go, are deleted.
My hackles get raised whenever I see/hear criticism of FDMH and the legacy of Chief Charles Himsel. Chuck was with every cell in his body and ounce of his soul dedicated to his department and the fire service in general. He was a true gentleman, a rascal of the highest order, and a fast friend to everyone he met. He built a department in what was a sleepy farm community near Madison, WI (which is now fastly becoming a Madison suburb) from a typical Wisconsin Rural FD into the most legendary fire department in the Midwest.
The reason FDMH's rigs are black is because Chuck reasoned (back in the early '80's when red vs. slime was still a subject of debate) that he never heard of a black colored fire engine getting in a wreck. FDMH calls the color "Safety Black"
Chuck was a warning device fanatic that would beat almost all of us here on this board in his expertise, except for Kevin O'Connell and the late John Dorgan. He amassed a collection of Fed 176's because, it was told to me by one of his deputies, that "Hawaii 5-0" was one of his favorite shows.
Almost all of the "extra" warning devices, the 888's, the Roto-Rays, etc. on FDMH rigs were bought with private funds, donated, or were from Chuck's collection.
Jim Kirvida of CustomFIRE (builder of FDMH Squad 1, the 2 original massive Peterbilt engines, and rehabber of the Amtek 4x4 rural E3) told a bunch of us on a tour of CustomFIRE's facility in Osceola, WI that he asked Chuck if he thought having 4 Q-siren faces on the front of their rig was excessive, Chuck replied "If anyone don't like it, well, I say "Four Q" to them".
If Chuck hadn't passed away, I'd be willing to bet that FDMH would be bidding out a tiller quint to replace their old but well kept Grumman AerialCat tower.
The amount of pride that the City of Mount Horeb has in their FD is astounding, and infectious. If anyone is ever in the Madison, WI, area, you have to stop by the firehouse. It truly is a museum and a point of light in the community.
The reason FDMH's rigs are black is because Chuck reasoned (back in the early '80's when red vs. slime was still a subject of debate) that he never heard of a black colored fire engine getting in a wreck. FDMH calls the color "Safety Black"
Chuck was a warning device fanatic that would beat almost all of us here on this board in his expertise, except for Kevin O'Connell and the late John Dorgan. He amassed a collection of Fed 176's because, it was told to me by one of his deputies, that "Hawaii 5-0" was one of his favorite shows.
Almost all of the "extra" warning devices, the 888's, the Roto-Rays, etc. on FDMH rigs were bought with private funds, donated, or were from Chuck's collection.
Jim Kirvida of CustomFIRE (builder of FDMH Squad 1, the 2 original massive Peterbilt engines, and rehabber of the Amtek 4x4 rural E3) told a bunch of us on a tour of CustomFIRE's facility in Osceola, WI that he asked Chuck if he thought having 4 Q-siren faces on the front of their rig was excessive, Chuck replied "If anyone don't like it, well, I say "Four Q" to them".
If Chuck hadn't passed away, I'd be willing to bet that FDMH would be bidding out a tiller quint to replace their old but well kept Grumman AerialCat tower.
The amount of pride that the City of Mount Horeb has in their FD is astounding, and infectious. If anyone is ever in the Madison, WI, area, you have to stop by the firehouse. It truly is a museum and a point of light in the community.
JohnMarcson
Administrator
usonian said:
There is nothing wrong with making a truck flashy or fancy as long as it still serves it's purpose and doesn't take funds from more essential areas. It has always been my understanding that Mt. Horeb trucks meet that criteria.
I do think you have to expect a certain level of attention and then some questioning when you have 4 Q grills on a truck. I mean isn't that part of why you do it? To get the most flashy, biggest, loudest truck you can?
My personal favorite is the use of vintage beacon rays on some of their modern trucks. It looks greats and is well supplemented with modern devices.
The reason FDMH's rigs are black is because Chuck reasoned (back in the early '80's when red vs. slime was still a subject of debate) that he never heard of a black colored fire engine getting in a wreck. FDMH calls the color "Safety Black"
Flawed logic from the chief of the MHFD.
If no one paints their appliances black then it's unlikely they are going to be involved in an RTC (road traffic collision).
Flawed logic from the chief of the MHFD.
If no one paints their appliances black then it's unlikely they are going to be involved in an RTC (road traffic collision).
JohnMarcson
Administrator
Snibsey said:The reason FDMH's rigs are black is because Chuck reasoned (back in the early '80's when red vs. slime was still a subject of debate) that he never heard of a black colored fire engine getting in a wreck. FDMH calls the color "Safety Black"
Flawed logic from the chief of the MHFD.
If no one paints their appliances black then it's unlikely they are going to be involved in an RTC (road traffic collision).
That's more of a joke than flawed logic. I believe he was making "light" of the fact that some of the data on slime green was flawed. So by saying the number of wrecks of black trucks were low (obviously the total number in field are low) he was more pointing out that there are other factors than paint color.
EMT-BLS said:
Another bit of "Fire Truck Chuck"'s logic was that both the chauffeur and officer ought to have horn & siren controls as they both will observe different traffic challenges en route to an incident. On all of FDMH's rigs with dual Q's, the chauffeur and officer have their own pedals to operate the siren on their side of the vehicle, as well as their own chains to honk Grover.
As long as you have an enthusiastic taxpayer base that supports it, a town council that approves it, and can do it at a discounted rate, gussy those rigs up!
JennyCop
Member